Owning your own home

Get a trusted builder or two to come and have a look at it. I reckon surveys are mostly useless, especially on a second floor LA. Damp won't be an issue. Unless you pull up floors, get onto the roof etc they're not going to find anything you haven't spotted already. If you find someone who's renovated that style of block before then even better.

Didn't think you went EX-LA in the end. Is this the one where the seller dragged it out because someone in their family was interested?

As above, a survey will be 99% useless. Unless you really can't spot 'little' things like crap electrics, missing fire doors, more than one supply of water, poorly fitted windows etc.

For the big things, you need to know what the major works schedule looks like.

Yeah, didnt know it was ex la for a while as it doesnt look like it at all. Not that im any expert..

On second thought, take all that with a pinch of salt. I've been around the block a couple of times now and probably wouldn't bother with a survey in future, but if it reassures you and only costs four or five hundred quid then do it.

I'd still get a builder round if you know one.

Yeah, didnt know it was ex la for a while as it doesnt look like it at all

Hmmm, be careful.

In what way? We just assumed it wasnt after the first viewing mainly because it was just 3 flats and was so nice. Theyy told us it was when we asked about it

In what way?

Two big things that could happen:

The freeholder will spend (a lot of) your money in an unpredictable and uncontrollable fashion
The land owner will knock your building down and stiff you

Small things:

Hard to Right to Manage / Acquire Freehold
Other residents might be tenants and / or complete dicks
Weird construction (might not actually be bad, just different)

Its still leased by southwark council, if that makes any diff

Its still leased by southwark council, if that makes any diff

You couldn't make it up

100% not following

I mean, I know Heygate is probably an outlier in how Councils deal with their tenants and leaseholders, but it's a great study in what the absolute worst that can happen to leaseholders is, who have a local authority as a freeholder.

Did you find out the property was ex LA before you put an offer in, or after?

Normally, I'd say ex la be cautious. But as this is Lambeth I'd probably say be extremely cautious.

As it's Southwark, I'd be more than cautious.

Found out before.

The flats in west dulwich i cant see it being an immediate target for regeneration.. not really in an area you could build very high as far as id think anyway

Found out before.

That's good, you had the opportunity to price it in with your offer.

Next up, concrete floor and plywood kitchen planning!

As in polished concrete? I can give you advice if so.

Mostly don't use Polished Concrete Co. aka The Polished Concrete Company aka The Flooring Co (Uk) Ltd...

Got my credit from bulb the other day and also another one! Must be some one on here as I haven't put it anywhere else, top work from London's friendliest forum!

We got it for the price we wanted so i guess we're just gna have to hope it all goes smoothly.

thanks all for survey advice, will look into getting a builder round then instead maybe

dont know if i actually ever posted it but here

http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-53548440.html

Well had a call from the EA... we are going to best and final... not sure I want it for more than we have offered, so floor is on hold.

Also may have slipped up, said my flat was sold, it isn't, he phoned who I said it was sold by and obvs they told the truth. Whooooooooopppppssss...

rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/proper­ty-53548440.html

Linky no worky

fixed

Congrats! Roof terrace looks awesome.

OK. The offer is still there if you want to talk about what to look out for with Ex LA stuff.

That terrace is amazing!

Croxted road? sure that ain't #wn4l ?

Thanks again, we did a lot of reading up and read a lot of horror stories but also every leasehold flat seems equally (or not far off) as much of a gamble.

Bonus of this place was small block size, we cant afford any new builds in areas we liked and everything that wasn't LA was much bigger blocks